


Devastating Diagnosis

by Aaronna



Series: Soldier of Healing [7]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: (duh), Aang is a petulant brat, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Episode: s01e17 Northern Air Temple rewrite, Foreshadowing, Gen, Herbalist Zuko (Avatar), Inspired by MuffinLance's Tumblr page, No beta: we die like men, Not Canon Compliant, Ozai is ticked, Qin is not messing with ghosts, Spirit is dramatic, Spirit is scary, Spirit is the Gaang dad, Spirit was busy, Zhao is mad, breif dark!Spirit, clueless Gaang
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-30
Updated: 2020-09-30
Packaged: 2021-03-08 02:01:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,395
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26737813
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aaronna/pseuds/Aaronna
Summary: Herbalist!Zuko AU - Episode: Northern Air Temple rewriteSpirit hates to be the bearer of bad news, but it was part of the job. Good news, on the other hand, he was happy to deliver.
Relationships: Miyuki & Zhao (Avatar), One-sided Teo/Spirit, Sokka/Science, Spirit & Aang (Avatar), Spirit & Qin (Avatar), Spirit & Teo (Avatar), Spirit & The Mechanist (Avatar), Teo & The Mechanist (Avatar), The Mechanist & Qin (Avatar)
Series: Soldier of Healing [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1910278
Comments: 48
Kudos: 528





	Devastating Diagnosis

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MuffinLance](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MuffinLance/gifts).



> This was a pain to write and my muse wanted me to skip straight to the North Pole. I hope it isn't as bad as I think it is.

He knew something was off with Aang after they listened to that storyteller, but he wasn't sure if the air nomad was thinking about the past, what could have been, or something else entirely. The man had called the birdman a windwalker, not an airbender, but it was clearly close enough to have Aang all pensive. Then he saw the greyish figures in the sky and his heart fell.

As Aang said the flyers had no spirit, the firebender knew he was going to be spending the day apologizing to these people as the airbender insulted them, knowingly or not. He also knew Sokka was going to rub Aang the wrong way, so he was going to have to make sure he was with one of them at all times. Spirit just hoped Katara would help him instead of blindly siding with the Avatar. 

Either way, one look at what had been done to the temple told him this was going to be a long and tedious stay. As expected, Aang pitched a fit, just Spirit knew he would. Long might be too simple of a word.

'(•V•)'

Aang felt betrayed. His heritage was being destroyed right in front of him by people who tried to be airbenders without bending and Sokka was happy about it! Spirit was worse though. 

Every time he said anything, the firebender was there apologizing! That is if he wasn't justifying what these people were doing! How could he think the temple being empty was a good reason to destroy the history of the Air Nomads? Sure, Spirit saved a few of the statues from destruction when the mechanist plowed in and said he was making a bathhouse, but that didn't make it better.

At least everyone wasn't against him. Katara was off gliding, which Aang knew was as close as she would ever come to flying on her own, but it made him sad at the same time. Him and Appa were the only two beings that could fly with airbending left in the world.

Teo was understanding in his own way, but his father was the one destroying everything. He had no connection to physical objects, so it made sense he didn't care if relics were destroyed. He only seemed to care about his father and flying.

Of course when he complained about it, Spirit then commented that Teo was an airbender in everything but power. The healer said the two of them were so alike, but Aang cared about more than just flying and his friends! Like helping people!

Oh… Helping people like letting them stay up in the temple where they were safe from Fire Nation… He might be in the wrong here…

Still, if he could protect one room, just one, so it was the same as it had been, then he was going to do so.

'(•V•)'

Sokka was in his element. Science everywhere! Steam power, sparking candles to tell the time, fixing a gas problem with rotten eggs, it was all great until Spirit showed up and pulled the mechanist aside. 

He wasn't sure what happened after that, only that those two disappeared while he started doodling an idea that had come to him. When they got back, Spirit looked upset and the mechanist was deathly white. He hadn't heard any explosions, so their friendly firebender hadn't set off any of the natural gas so what had happened? He asked, but both men shook their heads. 

Everything was more somber after that, but Aang had come around at least. The only odd thing was how Spirit was treated differently from the rest of them, not worse or better, just different. He could have sworn the mechanist nearly bowed when they left, but it wasn't something he could prove though.

Overall, Sokka was just glad the whole stay was so uneventful. He had a feeling it was all thanks to Spirit. He needed to find a way to thank him. Maybe when they reached the pole…

'(•V•)'

At first, Katara didn't understand why Aang wasn't happy there were other airbenders here at the Northern Air Temple. He seemed almost mad that they were trying to fly without airbending both before and after he flew with them. It only got worse when they landed.

Spirit was trying to keep the peace, but Aang and Sokka were not helping. She tried to change the subject, but that just led to her using one of Teo's friend's gliders, which wasn't as bad as she had feared. When she got back, Spirit had his hair down and looked upset, but tried to cover it up by asking to look at the injury that had their new friend chairbound.

She didn't stay for the exam, but Teo seemed more determined afterwards. By the time she found Aang or Spirit, they were both together and the Avatar looked awful. She wasn't sure if it was about what the healer found out about the mechanist's son, whatever was bothering the firebender earlier, or something else, but she tried to cheer the airbender up while the healer disappeared again. 

When they left, she saw the inventor partially bow to Spirit while the boy sent him a warning look. She would ask when they stopped next, but she was fairly certain her friend's princely status wasn't just her secret anymore. She just hoped the others didn't figure it out just yet.

'(•V•)'

Teo could hardly believe the Avatar had returned after a hundred years and had flown with him! Sure, the kid was a bit of a grump, but it wasn't really surprising since he had lost all of his people. That was why he had tried to show the airbender all the amazing things they had accomplished in the former temple. 

The kid was a bit old for a tantrum, but that was what his actions reminded Teo of. The girl in the green and grey, Spirit?, tried to keep things as peaceful as possible, but the last airbender wasn't stopped that easily. He didn't know these visitors very well yet, but he was sure that if that statue had actually been destroyed instead of moved, that the Avatar would have destroyed one of his dad's inventions in a fit of anger. 

He liked Katara and she seemed to be the only one that Avatar Aang wasn't upset with. Taking her flying was great and it seemed to help the airbender be a little less angry. Their talk afterwards about the hermit crab went well until Spirit walked up and the 12-year-old stormed off again. 

That was when he learned that Spirit was a healer and herbalist from a place occupied by the Fire Nation. Teo was glad Katara left to find the Avatar as he got asked questions that had him flushed with embarrassment. Then came the touching and moving of his hip, back, and legs that had his body all riled up despite the pain, which thankfully the girl didn't seem to notice. 

What she had to say at the end shocked him. There was a way to fix his legs. Spirit said it would be long and painful, but he would be able to walk again.

The idea of letting someone break his bones didn't sound like healing, but if Spirit said it would work, he would try it. She said she would come back after they got back from the North Pole and that she would help him walk again. It was at that moment that Teo realized this was just as important to her as it was to him.

What had happened to her to leave her desperate to help everyone? Was it the burn? He wasn't willing to ask to find out.

When the four of their visitors left, Teo felt something was different about the girl. Spirit seemed to be more serious, if that was possible, but also more determined. When they flew off, it was like there was a promise flowing with the breeze as she smiled at him.

'(•V•)'

They had been living in the temple for roughly a decade with no real "visitors", yet here was a child in an earth healer's garb stopping him from taking down the wall. He then met the long lost Avatar, an airbender of 12 and his Southern Watertribe traveling companions. The child Avatar seemed to feel that the temple was his, since he was the last of the airbenders, even though the place had been empty for 90 years. 

The healer helped the other kids move the statues to the other side of the room as a compromise, but it didn't seem to be enough to appease the Avatar. It was a kind gesture that had the mechanist smiling even before young Sokka asked about his inventions. He was still happy about the child until he was pulled aside and informed that his secret was out.

The healer had pulled him aside and said he knew the inventor was building things for the Fire Nation and that he could not let him continue to endanger everyone in the temple. He was not proud of pulling the boy into the other room and letting his whole story pour out of his mouth. Of course, that was when Qin arrived. 

The War Minister walked in as the healer hid. Qin chastised him for the wait and demanded his latest creation. To the boy's credit, he was silent as death and swifter than the wind, but the mechanist was horrified to see the flying balloon on fire in the sealed room. The War Minister opened his mouth to yell at him, most likely, only to go pale and back away from the sight of the healer.

The boy had thrown off his robe, leaving him bare chested, wearing white pants. His hair, no longer braided, flowed down to his knees. His golden eye seemed to mirror the flame around him. 

Beside him, the inventor could feel Qin shaking. It seemed the War Minister knew the boy and was terrified of him and if he was reading the healer right, the man was right to be scared. With a trembling in his usually confidant voice, the government official hesitantly called the boy 'my prince'. Until that moment, the mechanist hadn't been scared of the usually unassuming boy.

The venom the boy spewed as he claimed he had been the prince in a past life, how the Fire Lord would kill anyone to get what he wanted: Father, Wife, Nephew, Son. It made the inventor ill to imagine and Qin looked like he was going to faint. Then the boy asked if a man who was willing to sacrifice thousands of Fire Nation teenagers for a small advantage and sentenced his own son to the same fate for speaking out against the plan should be allowed to decide the fate of the world?

The man fell to his knees and prostrated himself in front of the boy and begged mercy. The boy then laughed the hollowest and guttural laugh the earth kingdom man had ever witnessed and said there was only one way to survive. Desert. The gasp that escaped the War Minister was like a man being strangled. 

The boy then stated that if an attack befell the temple, Qin's life was forfeit. He continued, stating that if word reached the Fire Lord of the Official's secret inventor, the War Minister and his entire family would die tragically, just as Prince Lu Ten had. Qin sobbed promises to stay silent and hide until after the comet had passed.

The healer prince must have agreed, because the fires swelled brightly. The fires then vanished and so did the boy. The War Minister got up quickly and pleaded for all Fire Nation inventions to be destroyed and the refugees that had made this place flee. After he said his piece, Qin ran like Koh was after him. As soon as the man was gone, the boy was back.

It seemed the boy really was Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation, son of Fire Lord Ozai, but gave up his statue after he was sent off to die. He then got the entire story of what happened up until the teenager confronted him in his workshop. After that, he agreed, it was too risky to stay.

The prince suggested Taku as a place to settle. It was close to a Fire Nation stronghold, but there was more acceptance there to Earth Kingdom citizens, especially if the same technology used in the air temple was used there. He then said to tell them Spirit had sent them.

After that, they fell into silence and returned to the workshop where Sokka was doodling blueprints. He wasn't sure when, but the prince had collected and pulled his healer robe back on at some point, so when the Watertribe boy looked up, he was unaware of what had happened. The Mechanist allowed the blue-eyed teen's plans distract him from what had taken place.

Before he knew it, the Avatar was not as angry and his group was leaving. He tried not to show his reverence to the prince that had likely just saved all their lives, but the look he got was clearly a sign he failed. When the healer sent Teo a smile, something in his chest, that he hadn't known was there, loosened.

He had a feeling his debts to the former prince just grew, but if it was for his son, he would shoulder it happily.

'(•V•)'

When he arrived at the temple, Qin had been irritated, but excited for the next innovation he was about to receive. He was furious to see the planned war balloon on fire, but his threats were slain before they were spoken when he saw the other figure in the room. Sozin's eyes looked back at him from a ghost's body and all other emotions were replaced by fear and dread.

It couldn't actually be Prince Zuko, given the boy had died three years before, and Prince Lu Ten had been gone nearly six years now. There was a lot of Lady Ursa in the face too. This was clearly those three souls, unclaimed by Agni, seeking vengeance. 

The title fell from his lips and the responding laugh echoed up from Koh's lair and out of lips silenced too young. He couldn't do anything less than throw himself completely at the spirits' mercy. He just hoped it was enough as he learned that the rumors were true and Fire Lord Ozai had been behind four different deaths in the royal family.

Being told he and his family would only survive if he, like former Admiral Jeong Jeong, became a deserter was like all the air in the world had been ripped away. But there was no airbender stealing his breath, just truths shattering his soul. He had to choose death, of not just himself, but also his family, or a constant threat of death. The path was clear.

He told the souls of the wrongfully dead he would do as they asked until the comet passed. After all, there wouldn't be any reason to hide after the Earth Kingdom was blazed out of existence. The fire around him grew bright, but without heat, and was gone and with it, the spirit.

He wasted no time in asking for everything to be destroyed and the people leave. His men knew about this place and rumors travelled fast among draftees. He was a dead man if just one comment reached the wrong ears and this place was razed yet again.

He fled as quickly as he could, hoping not to upset the unresting dead further. His men seemed confused, but he all could say was for them to get moving. It would explain it all to the captain, but not until they were miles away from this place.

'(•V•)'

Spirit one look at the steam pipes and he knew. It was something he saw a lot of when sneaking through the Pohuai Stronghold. Teo said his father was an inventor and everything fell into place.

Aang was acting his age, but that was a good thing in its own way. He stopped the mechanist from smashing the wall until they had moved the statues, but it wasn't his job or the Avatar's to stop these people from changing their home. He didn't like apologizing for the airbender being ridiculously possessive of a place he visited once, but it would get him up in the air so Spirit could look for what he was almost positive he would find.

His plan worked perfectly and he was soon alone to work. He found several hidden pathways and ductwork to explore. It didn't take him long to find a cracked wall he could get through to find a path to where he was dreading finding.

It was there in Fire Nation red, an advance that would make taking Ba Sing Se much easier. A fire powered air balloon. This wasn't good or even the entire issue.

These people had suffered from the 100 year war, but Teo's father was still working with the enemy. This meant one of two things: Either the inventor was unhinged or he had been threatened. It didn't matter which it was, it was about to end.

It didn't take long to get to the workshop and Sokka was interested in the inventions that he missed the look of horror when he told the mechanist he knew about him working with the Fire Nation. He let the panicking man pull him into another room and tell his side of the story. It was very sad and Spirit made a mental note to examine Teo after he dealt with this.

A bell rang back in the workshop and the Earth Kingdom man seemed to panic all over again. Hiding was second nature to Spirit and one glance at the War Minister had him racing back to the hidden room as he shook out Katara's braids. He pulled off his robe to hide his new life from a man who had known him in his previous one.

Spirit may have been a bit aggressive in setting the balloon up in flames, but there was no way he was letting Minister Qin get his hands on something like it. He hadn't expected the Official to nearly pass out at the sight of him. The man was shaking when he spoke the title that Spirit had cast off three years ago. 

His laughter was a bit disturbed and disturbing as it resonated with something in the room to sound inhuman. He was in no mood to play nice with his father's minister of war, so he pressed on. He felt good in a way that scared his in how like his grandfather he sounded as he vented truths and fears, absolutely terrifying Qin.

A dark park of him relished hearing the man begging, but that was a part of him he was not going to embrace. He simply explained the consequences of attacking the temple versus the Fire Lord knowing he had failed, which fed his darkness despite him trying not to. The sobbed promise didn't help, so Spirit dramatically burned the steel frame of the war balloon as he dashed into hiding and doused the fire.

The sadistic seed inside him withered a bit as the Official explained it was too dangerous for the temple's inhabitants to stay, which was very true, and then left at a speed unexpected for a man his age. Stepping out of hiding, Spirit explained everything. Saving the 41st, learning under his guardians, meeting Aang, getting hit by Zhao, healing Sokka and Katara, traveling to the abbey, bonding with Bato, fighting Zhao, joining the Gaang, Jeong Jeong, all of it.

They might not be able to fly there, but Taku would be a good place for them. They were used to Fire Nation advances in technology and were Earth Kingdom, they were probably the only way to tie the two peoples together. If nothing else, time with Miyuki might help the father and son with their individual issues. 

He left the shaken man with Sokka and went in search of Teo and his childhood injury. He found the boy with Aang and Katara, but only the latter of his friends stuck around to say hello, but Katara moved off when she realized what he was going to do. It was likely for the best.

The way the boy described his pain combined with his father's tale, Spirit fairly certain he knew what the problem was. Probing the bone and muscles, he realized his initial theory was wrong entirely and the facts before him were far more promising. Instead of paralysis and spine damage, it was a poorly healed hip and femur. 

If Miyuki was here, he would have rebroken and property set the bone as soon as they were away from the danger of staying in this place, but she was off somewhere else right now. If Katara was trained in how to use her water healing, they could have done it right then, but until she found a master in the north, she would likely do more harm than good. So for now, Teo would have to continue living the way he was.

Spirit explained what the problem was and how it could be corrected. The teen looked sceptical about having his bones broken, but there was hope in his eyes. They both understood this was a second chance. 

This was the least he could do after making it necessary for them to flee their home. He would find them after the North Pole and help him walk again. It was a promise and Spirit planned to keep it. 

He left Teo to continue about his day and went for a walk, which he shouldn't have been surprised led him to Aang who was venting his frustrations. Apparently, the airbender was upset at a kid from the Earth Kingdom for living his life like an Air Nomad. It was ironic and Spirit had no qualms pointing it out, which finally seemed to knock sense into the Avatar. 

After that, Spirit was able to relax for a short while before they continued their journey. He wasn't really looking forward to the pole during the winter, but he would survive the long nights. He was just glad his goodbyes had only been a glare and smile at father and son respectively and he was off. It wasn't until he was in the air that he realized he had missed something really important that he should have looked into instead of taking time for himself

Qin said until after the comet. There was only one comet that he could have meant. Agni's Bride, commonly called Sozin's Comet. It hadn't been seen in a hundred years, but it was due return by the end of next summer.

Spirit hated to give bad news, but it seemed it was part of the job. He was going to have to tell a 12-year-old kid that he had half a year to master all four elements, or the world would burn. Just not yet.

Let him be a child just a little while longer.

'(•V•)'

Ozai was not at all pleased. 

He had been receiving word from Generals and Commanders that his new Admiral had been forsaken by Agni and fallen mad. Reports of the man ordering the death of healers because they were demon cats in human form, destroying parts of his fleet in the name of purging spirits, and similar other issues. Personally, the Fire Lord saw nothing wrong with this, given madness was what you wanted in a battle against spirits, but he had an image to uphold. 

He couldn't afford to delay the attack on the North, so he couldn't very well replace the man to shut up the masses. Azula could more than do the job, but she was his trump tile and it wouldn't do to play her so soon. No, the only answer was to send his sagely brother.

He was respected enough to silence descent, but not enough for a mutiny. If the campaign was a failure, his brother would take the fall. If Iroh was lost in the battle, more the better. 

Now he could focus on the many deserters as of late. Maybe, that was something the Crown Princess could deal with while her doting uncle was off losing what little credit he still had. He understood those who left the fleet under Zhao, but War Minister Qin and his men, that was a problem. This was Admiral Jeong Jeong all over again and he was not going to allow another mass of soldiers to get away like they did after Zuko. 

'(•V•)'

Zhao wasn't sure of anything anymore. He couldn't trust Agni's light after he had risen with the sun, only to find the night wasn't even half over. Their ships were constantly heading the wrong way despite none of the controls having been changed. Nothing tasted right, but everyone else seemed to think it was fine.

He had only seen the demon Miyuki a few times, but her presence was everywhere. White cat fur all over his clothing, hairballs and other excrements were in his bed and belongings. There wasn't a map or scroll she hadn't shredded, claw marks were everywhere, and he was fairly possitive the puddles in the corridors were heres too.

Since she could take human form, it was harder to catch her. The healers and doctors were imprisoned unless needed since her previous form was a healer. Helmets and masks thrown in the hold and there was a headcount and inspection of the entire fleet daily. 

Their numbers were dropping and Zhao was convinced Miyuki was in league with Koh the Facestealer and taking his men. There were no other options since they weeks out to sea and none of the smaller crafts were missing. It was that or they were turning to La for a quick death, but only colonials were that dumb.

Miyuki was trying to drive him mad, but it would never work! He had faced Wan Shi Tong in the Library lost in the Si Wong Desert! He would survive the cat!


End file.
